Martial Fitness

What exactly is Martial Fitness? Definitions vary depending on the mindset of the individual. Yes, I said mindset. What does that have to do with the depth and breadth of one’s fitness goals? Everything…

The word “martial” tends to bring up visions of war, battle or some kind of conflict. When the mindset should include the ability to keep your loved ones safe. That doesn’t automatically mean something combative. There are several connotations and / or theoretical applications. What martial fitness means to me includes a whole slew of different situational applications:
– The fitness foundations that allows unfaltering skill acquisition in all disciplines of the traditional martial arts – Kung Fu, Aikido, Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Boxing, Wrestling, Capoeira, Shenkindo, Jeet Kune Do, Brazilian Ju Jitsu, Hapkido, Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Judo, Krav Maga, Kempo, Kuk Sool, and the list goes on…
– A compilation of fitness attributes the create Strength, Endurance and Confidence
– A creation of Mental and Physical Balance (remember I said earlier – MINDSET)
– The ability to ADAPT to environment, emergency and / or situation
– The most thought of answer ( and I have and currently train several LEO and Current / ex-military clients) is a combative application.
– An ability that transcends fitness levels, age or discipline
– A discipline of fitness that includes strength, stamina, stability, flexibility, explosive power, injury resistance and limitless constitution

And that last statement really brings it home to me personally as an exercise physiologist. The words I focus on most is “athletic” and “precision”. That’s how your program needs to be designed. All the aspects of athleticism in a progressive / regressive pattern with PRECISE and PERIODIZED programming model. An amalgam of exercises all thrown together in a jumbled mess in order to create order out of chaos is going to produce results on such an inconsistent basis causing the trainee to possibly overtrain, create a training void because some type of fitness gets neglected, or worse… get injured (whether chronic or acute) is the sign of a poorly designed program.

A comprehensive evaluation, assessment and screening process is imperative to achieving Martial Fitness. If you don’t know where you’re going until you know where you’ve been. Getting quantifiable data that one can track is the only intelligent route to take. “Comprehensive” means that there all kinds of strength, all kinds of stamina, all kinds of flexibility, all kinds of agility, etc. that needs to be addressed. Then beyond that, the evaluation needs to include custom, yet data and norm based drills and tests that are specific to the tasks required. Whether it be police / military / first responder, traditional martial art, emergency medical personnel, self defense class, high adventure activities, and so on, the evaluation needs to reflect that.

What does Martial Fitness mean to you? What kinds of situations do you think you might find yourself in? If you have a physical job, what aspects of the fitness spectrum will that pull from and allow you to do your job efficiently and remain injury free? What are your fitness weaknesses? We, as humans, tend to stick with what we are already good at performing on a regular basis. True Martial Fitness dictates that we are above proficient in all areas of the spectrum.

Interested in Martial Fitness? Have a specific goal or task in mind you want to be totally prepared for? Need a custom comprehensive evaluation to administer to your group? Think your current program lacks a certain something and you can’t quite put your finger on it? Coming back from some type of injury and need to get back to specs asap? Is your current routine keeping you in pain or retaining a nagging injury? Let us help. At ICON Performance, that is what we specialize in. With 30 years of experience, we can see your goals from all perspectives simultaneously. You’ll get the most advanced design available to get you to your goals fast and safe.